My eyes widened when I read: “Social groups reiterated their call to a general strike for 24 hours November 14, asking the labor, productive and academic sectors to join the mobilization, guaranteeing it will be peaceful and with innovative forms of protest.”

Finally, I found: “Strikers at the car assembly plant ended their eight-day occupation of the plant late Friday night, under threat of police violence. About 1,500 police troops moved into the factory early that day to enforce a high court order to end the occupation. Workers continued with their strike, however, camping outside the factory some 100 meters away.”

On my initial visit to OWS, the first thing I noticed upon exiting the downtown #2 Train was that Wall Street—the actual street—had been shut down by the NYPD. OWS had been announced for months in advance so the army of the rich was under strict orders to make certain that nothing was to hinder business-as-usual.

There’s much to praise and love about OWS and the Zuccotti Park/Liberty Plaza occupation (plus its related marches and protests) is costing the Big Apple a fair amount in NYPD overtime for overkill. But, as OWS passed the one-month stage, no one could honestly say the earnings of the 1% have suffered yet.

So…what might convert 1% arrogance to 1% anxiety?

Reality: They need us more than we need them

There’s plenty that needs to be addressed (I’ve documented much of it here). We’ve tried letters to the editor, petitions to Congress, candlelight vigils, clever signs, weekend marches, puppet shows, voting for the lesser (sic) evil, and even holding hands across the world—but things keep getting worse.

The 1% can mock the OWS crowd for (allegedly) not having an agenda, but they won’t be laughing if the subways and buses don’t run, bank tellers stay home, food deliveries halt, airlines are grounded, garbage piles up on the streets—and the nanny calls in sick…for the next month.

Imagine: No one to drive their limos, tutor their kids, do their laundry, landscape their property, walk their dogs, open doors for them, reboot their damn laptops when they crash, and best of all: no one to fight their wars.

Ultimately, the 1% can mock the OWS crowd all they want, but they won’t be laughing as they watch stock prices and corporate profits take an abrupt nose-dive.

Two words: General Strike

A tactic with a long history dating back to Roman days, it’s been described by the “Call for General Strike” Facebook page, as “involving workers across multiple trades or industries that involves enough workers to cause serious economic disruption” (and is) “in essence, a general strike is the complete and total shutdown of the economy.”

It worked in 1886 in the fight for an eight-hour day and it worked much more recently in Egypt (although that endgame does not seem it will play out as hoped) and the general strike concept remains as fluid as it needs to be while participants can be as involved as they want/choose to be.

It may start with personal/lifestyle changes pertaining to consumption, banking choices, transportation options (e.g. choose 2 wheels, not 4), and the like. These are all good initial steps in the name of luring the masses into a build-up to something bigger.

However, moving from points of consumption to points of production (factories, offices, and other workplaces) through a full-fledged general strike will require coordination and commitment. This is much more than most of us have been willing to do so far—but that notion seems to be changing daily.

We’ve got the numbers

Instead of trying (in vain) to provide any sort of blueprint for such action, I’d rather close by simply reminding the 99% that those who profit most from this corrupt and destructive system are standing on our shoulders. If we squirm and shrug and flail our arms, it will get mighty wobbly up there. Whether a general strike lasts a month, a day, or just one hour, the 1% will hear your message…louder and clearer than ever before.

As Arundhati Roy sez: “Colorful demonstrations and weekend marches are vital but alone are not powerful enough to stop wars. Wars will be stopped only when soldiers refuse to fight, when workers refuse to load weapons onto ships and aircraft, when people boycott the economic outposts of Empire that are strung across the globe.”

In a nation of over 300 million people, it’s only taken perhaps 10,000 steady occupants—from coast to coast—to make OWS front-page news on a daily basis. Imagine the impact when tens of thousands grows into millions…

OccupyRefusal. OccupyResistance. Occupy4GeneralStrike.

Mickey Z. is the author of 11 books, most recently the novel Darker Shade of Green. Until the laws are changed or the power runs out, he can be found on an obscure website called Facebook.

Mike Ballard

Yes. Refuse their rule. That’s what needs doing. One Big Union refusing their rule is a social revolution.

LITTLEBUZZARD1

It’s worked in Europe . It should make a dent here too …. or hopefully a chasm

etherial dragon

u think its bad there england is even further behind u guys its embarrasing, its somthing i’ve said for so long that if we ALL stand at once and say no then they have no choice but to listen or get out of the way.

Concerned

The goal should not be to get a US only General Strike. The goal should be to get a Global General Strike.

Anonymous

when the transit workers went on strike in the 1970s in NYC the city literally shut down. A large scale version of that would be something else… class warfare, getting more strategic and hitting them where it hurts, their bank accounts. mock us, but we have more power in our numbers.

Anonymous

when the transit workers went on strike in the 1970s in NYC the city literally shut down. A large scale version of that would be something else… class warfare, getting more strategic and hitting them where it hurts, their bank accounts. mock us, but we have more power in our numbers.

Anonymous

when the transit workers went on strike in the 1970s in NYC the city literally shut down. A large scale version of that would be something else… class warfare, getting more strategic and hitting them where it hurts, their bank accounts. mock us, but we have more power in our numbers.

Chiara2

I think the leaders of the U.S. movement are setting up their followers to be sitting ducks. All I hear is, “We’re peaceful, we’re non-violent!” – and then they send people out to face a violent, corrupt police force all over the United States. They want to be 60’s hippies, but never learned their history – that didn’t work then, and it won’t work now. They need to be teaching those kids self-defense for one thing; and coming up with stronger tactics than “Let’s roll over on our backs and enjoy it”, which is all anyone is seeing. And then they wonder why no one in the U.S. is paying any attention to this movement? They’re the reason why. Replace the occupation leadership with people with tactical skills and guts!

but somehow, a strike still probably does more damage to the workers than to those in power
how bout this, NObody pay rent OR mortgage
THAT will hit the banks
this idea that someone can hold on to property, leaving it unoccupied and dilapidated just so they get to make money off it in the future has to go
you don’t live there or use it directly, it goes to whomever does